Hello friends!
I’m excited to announce that I’m cycling across the USA for the 3rd time. But what I’m really excited to announce is that YOU ARE INVITED. The first thing that might come to mind is “I couldn’t possibly keep up.” Well, great news for you, my partner, Cheryl Davies, is the co-host of this ride and she’s never rode more than 30 miles in a day. If she can do it, so can you!

This isn’t any old bike ride though. We are the Green Riders, cycling in the service of the many good people of our nation. All across the country we will be helping others to grow their own food and live more sustainably. We’ll be starting gardens at people’s homes, at schools, and in the communities of small towns and urban cities in every state that we pass through. Plus we’ll be Freestyle Gardening all over the country! Each place that we pass through will be left a slightly better place than we found it.

We’ll also be stopping into many farms and gardens across the country to learn from the amazing things they are doing as well as share their work. We’ll visit permaculture farms, organic farms, off the grid homesteads, sustainability centers, and more. By joining this adventure you’ll not only get to help others but also expand your knowledge and skills.

We will travel in a low impact style living in an environmentally friendly manner. You will learn and practice simple living, sustainable living, zero waste, and holistic health as well as how to live with less money. We will be camping and staying with hosts along the way so the costs of the trip will be very minimal. This journey will be an immersive experience in sustainable living and we hope you’ll come away inspired and informed on how to be a positive impact on the world around you.

Our route will take us across the Northern states of the USA from New York City, NY to Seattle, Washington which is about 3,700 miles. We’ve chosen this route because we will also spend time exploring National Parks, wild areas, camping, and cycling in peace.

All people are welcome to join who want to work together on this mission. You can join for the entire ride, an entire state or just a few miles. Email [email protected] to let us know if you’d like to join or to subscribe to updates on the route, schedule, and plan.

We are looking to collaborate along the way. If you’d like to host us, create an event, or volunteer in your town or city, please reach out. Basically if you want to get involved in any way send us an email!

Hundreds of people from all over the world have emailed us to say that they’d like to join. It looks like we’ll have a great turnout already! A lot of questions have been asked and I’ve answered them all below.

This is a totally grassroots ride. There is no organization in charge of this ride or responsible for anyone who decides to ride. We are riding together and can choose to support each other but we are each wholly responsible for ourselves.

Accommodations: We are working on having simple campsites available for riders every night. This would be at places such as farms, backyards, schools, churches, businesses, campgrounds, etc. We are not certain we will accomplish this for every night but we are working on it. You will need your own tent and sleeping gear as most, if not all, nights will be outdoors. You will need to be prepared to camp outdoors for it to be feasible to join this ride. You can choose to stay in hotels if you’d like.

Support vehicles: There will be no support vehicles provided. Each cyclist must carry their gear on their bicycle.

Support: No support will be provided including but not limited to medical assistance, gear, or vehicle support. Each cyclist must take care of themselves.

Food and water: No food or water will be supplied. Each cyclist must provide their own food and water.

Some thoughts from Rob: You can decide what you want to eat and of course once we are together people can decide to cook together and share food. You can go grocery shopping in towns we pass through and carry a camp stove to cook or you can stop in restaurants to eat or you can make simple foods such as peanut butter and honey sandwiches. You can do whatever you want.

Miles per day: Cycling across the USA is a huge task and will be extremely challenging for most people. It should not be taken lightly how strenuous this trip will be. For the first half of the trip, up to North Dakota the plan is to ride about 50 miles per day. For the second half, starting in North Dakota, the plan is to ride about 70 miles per day. There are about 16 rest days planned. Some days when we are covering deserts we might have to do longer days. The route and schedule will be planned out in advance, including the rest days, and will not be able to be altered during the trip. Because people ride at different paces we will all ride at our own paces through out the day and have a meeting point each night. This way you can spend the day on your own or with others depending on how you are feeling that day.

Pets: Because of the challenge of organizing 60+ different accommodations it will not be feasible to accommodate dogs. It is highly advised that you do not to bring a dog. However, if you choose to bring a dog you will need to organize separate accommodations for each night.

Can you join if you don’t live in the USA?
Anyone can join regardless of what country you are from. If you are from outside the USA you are in charge of your own visas and such.

Cost:

All riders will handle all of your own expenses but there is no fee to take part in the ride.

Gear:

You will need to provide all of your own gear and are fully responsible for your own gear.

Here is Rob’s suggested packing list from his last bicycle ride across the USA. We suggest researching and talking to people who have cycled across the USA in the past to decide what gear you’ll want. We recommend traveling as light as possible. The less stuff you are carrying the easier (and likely more enjoyable) this whole experience will be. If you are thinking of riding any bike that is larger than a standard sized bicycle please email [email protected] with a photo. Keep in mind we are crossing 3 mountain ranges and many, many hills so it will not be easy to carry a lot of weight. It is encouraged to install a simple rack with panniers on your bike rather than carry a trailer. If you are going to carry a trailer a one-wheeled trailer such as a BOB Yak is the best.

Join for a section:

You can join for the entire trip or any section that you’d like. You can cycle across the whole country with us, just a state, or even just through your town. Whatever you’d like.

Experience level:

You are not required to have any level of experience. Just keep in mind, cycling across the USA is a huge task and will be extremely challenging for most people. It should not be taken lightly how strenuous this trip will be.

Budget:

You are completely on your own to decide how much money you’ll need to budget for this trip. However here is some advice from Rob: For anyone that wants to do this on a small budget you could likely do it for between $500 to $2,500. This does not include getting to the starting point or ending point or the gear you purchase for the ride. Those costs vary widely depending on you. One of your likely main expenses on this trip will be food. Most nights accommodation will be free with a host we hope but some campgrounds will have to be budgeted for. That is being worked on now. You are in charge of your own finances so budget really comes down to you. For some tips to do this on an extreme budget see my guide: How to Travel the USA for Free (without mooching).

Deadlines:

There is no deadline for you to decide when to join. If you are there on the start date or at any of the meeting points along the way then you’ll ride with us and if you aren’t then you won’t.

Fundraising:

Anyone who wants to raise money can. We are raising funds for seeds, seedlings, fruit trees, gardening materials (soil, compost, materials to build raised beds), materials to build rainwater harvesting units and compost bins, and tools. Some funds will also be needed to cover the costs of our hosts across the country.

Fundraising will not be required to join the trip but we are encouraging that each person donates or raises $100 so that we can plants millions of seeds together!

We ask that you refrain from carrying illegal drugs on this trip or from drinking very much alcohol. We want this to be a freeing experience for everyone and to minimize possible problems. We believe a drug free summer can be of benefit to everyone that joins.

We are proud to be sponsored by San Diego Seed Company. They are providing us with our vegetable and herb seeds to start little gardens across the country and wildflower seeds for the bees!